So Crazy in Love
by Natsuko-Lissa
Summary: Sess is forced to request Kagome's assistance with Naraku. Finding him is much too easy… but they soon know why. He has tainted Sess in Rin's eyes. Kagome stays until Rin returns to normal. Of course this leads to chaos, humor and lots of sexual tension
1. The Gift Most Sought

Chapter One

The Gift Most Sought

It happened in an instant. She had no time to think, if she didn't stop Sesshoumaru now, he would kill InuYasha. The Tetsusaiga had been knocked away from InuYasha by Sesshoumaru's last attack with his acid whip. It was now about ten feet away from Sesshoumaru, and InuYasha had an injured leg. There was no way he could get to it. Shortly, InuYasha would transform, and if she didn't stop him, she knew that Sesshoumaru would severely wound or even kill him.

She shot an arrow at Sesshoumaru, and he easily dodged it. However, this is what Kagome had been hoping for, she had driven him at least another twenty feet from the Tetsusaiga. She was now closer to it, and she knew that her only chance to retrieve it for InuYasha lay in her not hesitating to think about the fact that Sesshoumaru was easily fast enough to kill her before she had taken even three steps. Not hesitating even half a second, Kagome ran with all her might towards the Tetsusaiga, never taking her eyes off her enemy in case she needed to unleash another arrow.

Sesshoumaru was momentarily annoyed by the human girl's interference in his battle. '_My half-breed brother may tolerate you for some odd reason, wench, but I will not allow you to interfere with _my _business.'_ He quickly dodged her arrow and was surprised when it seemed that this is what she had expected. He kept his curiosity veiled as he saw her take off at full force for the Tetsusaiga. He could easily have killed her; she wouldn't have a chance to get the sword if he didn't want her to, so why would she even bother risking it?

He decided to push the boggling question to the back of his mind for now, as he allowed her to return the Tetsusaiga to InuYasha. He had no desire to deal with his little brother in his full demon form at the moment. He realized that this girl must really care for his brother, because even a petty human such as her had to know that she stood no chance again him, yet she risked it to help him anyway. This perplexed him more than anything else.

Sesshoumaru recalled the reason for this battle to his mind. He had come to inform InuYasha that if he didn't keep his dead wench under control, she would face death again. InuYasha's fury and protection of the priestess was so complete that he thought that this younger wench had to realize that his brother did not care for her in return. Yet, she was risking her life to help him. He could not rationalize her actions and it was making him even more irate.

But that did not matter now. He could sense the cause of this fight drawing near, and he knew that InuYasha did too.

Kagome quickly returned the Tetsusaiga to InuYasha and stood beside him. She realized that something must be happening because both of the brothers had just stopped fighting. She wasn't sure what was going on, but she would be there by InuYasha's side through anything. Her eyes widened and her heart sank as she saw Kikyo walk out of the edge of the forest.

Sesshoumaru glared and InuYasha moved to protect her, leaving Kagome planted to her spot. About half way between Sesshoumaru and Kikyo, InuYasha stopped as Kikyo drew an arrow and strung her bow. He turned to look at Sesshoumaru only to find that he had moved and that he indeed was not her target. InuYasha found himself rooted to the ground and unable to take any kind of action. He had left Kagome so vulnerable there, but he didn't believe for one second that Kikyo would let go that arrow. Not his Kikyo.

He calmly turned and faced Kikyo again, Kikyo's eyes grew triumphant and Kagome's heart shattered. Kikyo smiled and Kagome closed her eyes as the tears flowed down her face. InuYasha, oblivious to the latter's condition, walked slowly towards Kikyo, and his heart stopped as he heard the twang of Kikyo's bow. The seconds turned to hours as he turned to see the arrow enter Kagome's chest.

Sesshoumaru watched in disgust as the scene unfolded. His idiot of a half-brother had trusted that evil priestess with the life of his comrade. What a fool. Sesshoumaru was studying the younger woman's features when his brother turned from her to face this Kikyo. Sesshoumaru was shocked at the amount of pain he could read in her face at that instant, and knew that when she closed her eyes, she was resigning herself to death. Foolish human. He watched when the arrow hit, and when her eyes flew open to reveal an enormous amount of raw pain, Sesshoumaru felt an odd tingling in the pit of his stomach. His half-breed brother stood stock still, in shock that the priestess had actually shot the girl. Such a fool, he did not deserve to have someone give their life for him.

Sesshoumaru walked calmly to the human girl and pulled his Tenseiga. She looked up at him and shook her head. He looked at her questioningly; she knew that this sword was a sword of healing, so why was she stopping him.

She opened her eyes and he saw something there that he did not expect to see. When she saw his look of confusion she smiled and said, "Let me die, Sesshoumaru. I love InuYasha, and he loves Kikyo. If I die, Kikyo can have her soul back, and they will get to live the life they have always deserved. I will die happy knowing that I could do this for him." She coughed up some blood and closed her eyes again, she was not dead yet, but it would not be long.

He turned and looked at his brother, who was still standing in the same place, unable to move a muscle to help the girl who had given everything for him. He looked back at the girl and knew that she was dead. '_No, InuYasha does not deserve this gift, and the girl does not deserve this fate.'_ Reaching down, Sesshoumaru removed the arrow from her chest and pulled back to swing his Tenseiga. He saw the messengers of death coming for her. He swung the great sword and sheathed it quickly. He then went to stand right in front of his brother.

"I have both given you a gift, and taken one away. In my opinion, you pathetic half-breed, you deserved neither of them. You have disgraced our demon blood by turning your back on a comrade in battle." He gave InuYasha a look that told him that he thought he was the most petty and disgusting being he had ever come across. He then summoned his dust cloud and began to retreat; only slightly raising his voice so that his brother could hear him. "Remember as I've told you, _brother_, keep her under control." And with that he was gone.

InuYasha saw Kagome stirring and quickly went to her side. "Kagome, I'm sorry. I didn't think that she would shoot. I'm so sorry." With that the side of her face was smashed into the cloth of his red jacket. She kept hearing him say "I'm so sorry" over and over. '_Not as sorry as I am. Why did he bring me back? There for a minute I thought that he might have understood why I was doing it, but he brought me back anyway. Why?'_ Kagome started tearing up again. She surprised herself, had she actually _wanted_ to die?

She pushed herself out of InuYasha's grasp and stood, albeit a little unsteadily, and looked to the place where Kikyo had stood. Not very surprisingly, she had fled.

Kikyo wandered back through the woods calling her soul gatherers to her to take her back to her little village. During the journey, she had many things to think about. _It didn't work. The girl was dead, I'm sure of that, and yet my soul did not return to me. Why?_ After much thought and debate in her mind, she came to the conclusion that it had just been too rushed. The soul had not had proper time to part with the body before that fool of a demon had brought her back. Well, she would not let such a thing happen again.


	2. A Demon's Jealosy and a Tempting Proposi...

Chapter Two

A Demon's Jealousy and a Tempting Proposition 

Sesshoumaru reached his campsite within fifteen minutes of leaving InuYasha to help the girl. He had been able to heal her body, but he knew that not even the strongest of magic would heal the wounds caused by his moronic half-brother. Not that he cared about the petty wounds in the human wench's heart. Rin ran up to him and smiled widely, and Jaken was nowhere to be seen.

"Hello, Lord Sesshoumaru. Did Lord Sesshoumaru's talk with his brother go well? Rin hopes it did. Rin and Jaken played while Lord Sesshoumaru was gone. We played find Rin, and Rin scared Jaken and Jaken fell. Rin had much fun." Sesshoumaru looked down at Rin and his expression was soft, though he did not smile. He heard a rustling and noticed a familiar scent as a mumbling and drenched Jaken entered the clearing.

"Oh! Lord Sesshoumaru! The girl ran and hid from me! I tried to find her, but she knocked me in the river! I'm sorry, but you should be able to..." Jaken let his sentence die as he saw her annoying, smiling face in front of Lord Sesshoumaru. He glared at her and grew angrier when this made her giggle. '_I swear she's trying to get me killed. Lord Sesshoumaru is out of his mind keeping this little brat here with us. I wish he would have let her stay dead.'_

"Jaken, you shall be more careful with Rin or you shall pay for it dearly." With that, he turned and walked away, with the cheerful child at his feet. A recently familiar black emotion overtook Jaken as he slowly followed behind them. He could not help but think that Lord Sesshoumaru had been weakened by this human child, and it pained him to see that in his master.

Naraku's smile was unusually wide as he turned from his puppet. He had done well to check up on InuYasha's older brother. It seemed that he may be able to obtain some leverage on him after all. Sesshoumaru seemed much more sensible than InuYasha and therefore held nothing and no one important enough to be able to be controlled with them. This problem had plagued Naraku for some time, but it seemed that things had changed since his last encounter with the dog demon. Naraku shook his head and chuckled at the demon's fall from grace.

InuYasha and Kagome walked back to the village with the herbs that had been all but forgotten in the battle. Nothing was said and the atmosphere strained with the tension between the two. Kagome was very hurt from what had happened, but even more from the fact that when she looked at InuYasha, she could tell he was thinking about Kikyo again. Her eyes filled with tears, realizing that InuYasha would never love her the way he loved Kikyo. She had given her life for him, was walking two feet away from him, and he still thought about Kikyo. It was almost relieving to know that even dying for him would not make him love her. She had been a fool up to now, but that was because he had always been so protective and jealous over her. She had thought there was hope. Now knowing that there wasn't, took a lot of the stress of needing to know exactly her feelings for him, off of her. Unfortunately, her feelings for him were painstakingly obvious to her now. She loved him, with all of her heart, which was now in a thousand pieces.

InuYasha was very hurt and confused about the battle today. He was hurt because he had trusted Kikyo and she had betrayed him. He was hurt because Kagome had died because of this betrayal. He was hurt because he knew that the most pain that Kagome had felt had been caused by him and not Kikyo. And he was confused, because in the end, it had been his damned brother that had saved Kagome. He was ashamed that he felt so angry and thankful to his brother at the same time. He was ashamed because Sesshoumaru's words had wrung true and struck deep. And feeling all these things at once just pissed him off.

That was good; it was familiar, almost comfortable to feel anger. "Kagome, did we get all the stupid herbs that the old hag wanted?" He turned and stopped in his tracks when he saw the tears streaking her cheeks. He had been so wrapped up in his own thoughts that he hadn't even noticed. The salty scent stung his eyes and the waiver in her voice stabbed his heart.

"Yes, we had just finished when Sesshoumaru showed up. None of them were lost, I checked before we left." She had continued walking, so InuYasha quickly caught up with her. She took in a quick breath when he pulled her to him in a comforting hug. She knew that he meant well, but this embrace hurt her more than he could ever know, and Kagome got angry with him despite her intentions. She harshly pushed him away and turned to walk again. When he grabbed her hand, she turned and swung her arm, slapping him hard across the face.

"You still don't get it do you InuYasha?! I was killed today! I died! You trusted her and she killed me! You can't protect me when it comes to Kikyo. No, you _won't_ protect me. You turned your back on me and I'm never going to be able to forget that!" She burst into tears and took off running towards the village, leaving InuYasha behind, holding his cheek where she had slapped him. His own eyes watering, and not from the slap.

Kagome returned to the village after having stopped and calmed herself, so as to appear as normal as possible to her friends. She went quickly to Kaede's hut and left the herbs with her. As soon as she left she heard Shippo's voice, and turned to see him jumping towards her. She quickly took him to her in a hug and was happy to be doing something so natural. She greeted Sango and Miroku who were close behind. When they asked where InuYasha was, her face took a stony expression and she said that he had some business to take care of and would be back shortly.

However, she needed to go home tonight so as not to get too far behind in school. "I just found out that I missed two tests last week. They're going to let me retake them, but I'm sure they won't give me that much more time, so I'm going to go get my stuff together." She smiled tightly and went to gather her things. She desperately needed some space and time to think things through.

Sesshoumaru sensed the demon ahead and stopped. Looking back at the brooding Jaken he ordered his attention. "Jaken, stay with Rin. I fear that there is danger up ahead." He said nothing else as he left quickly to dispatch of the danger.

Jaken looked at Rin with contempt and slouched against a nearby tree. Watching her wouldn't be much of a job this time, as she was busying herself petting Ah and Un. He was suddenly grabbed and gagged and carried out of earshot of the girl. He was dropped to the ground and, sputtering, he came to his feet. He recognized the creature in front of him. It was the one who had given his Lord Sesshoumaru the human arm. "Naraku, what are you aiming at? Lord Sesshoumaru will surely be displeased at your interference with him again. This time, I am sure he will not allow you to escape so easily."

Naraku chuckled quietly. "I ask of you, merely to let me take the girl without calling to him. I shall not kill you if you agree. If not, I shall kill you now, but my chances of getting the girl are sorely diminished. We can help each other, little demon."


	3. An Unlikely Alliance

Chapter Three

An Unlikely Alliance

Sesshoumaru whisked off to bring down the demon that was challenging him. It was not a terribly strong demon, but it was particularly fast. It kept lunging at him and then backing off so he had to follow him for an attack. After many minutes of this, he pulled his Tokijin and made quick work of him. Only then did Sesshoumaru realize the actual distance that he had been drawn away. Quickly sensing something awry, he headed back to his companions.

When he arrived he smelled the blood of Ah and Un. He quickly searched around for signs of either Jaken or Rin and was quick to find a slightly wounded Jaken crawling out of the woods. He could not smell, hear, or sense Rin anywhere around. Sesshoumaru turned icy eyes towards Jaken and asked him what had happened.

"W- Well, milord. Do you r- remember that d-demon that lent you the human arm?" '_Naraku_.' "Well, he showed up and t-took Rin, m-milord. I tried to stop him, but I was w-wounded, milord." Jaken kept his head lowered during their exchange and Sesshoumaru could tell from his nervousness and his simply being alive that he had had something to do with this. He grabbed Jaken around the throat, '_and even if he didn't, I told him to protect her, and he didn't.'_ His hand clenched and he released poison from his claws.

Naraku had covered his and Rin's scent. He would not be able to merely follow them. He dropped the lifeless body of his traitorous cohort and walked to the lifeless body of Ah and Un. Rin had enjoyed the company of Ah and Un. He unsheathed his Tenseiga and quickly brought them back to life. He then turned and walked towards the only person who would be able to help him find Naraku.

Miroku looked at InuYasha when he arrived back to the village. He looked oddly sad. Knowing that InuYasha didn't like to see himself like that, mixed with Kagome's odd behavior, he realized that something really bad must have happened on their outing.

"InuYasha, Kagome has returned home. She left not too long ago. While she didn't exactly seem enraged, she definitely didn't seem normal. Did something happen when you were out today?" InuYasha looked at Miroku, and felt no need, nor desire, to keep the truth from him.

"Yes, Miroku, something happened. We were attacked by Sesshoumaru. And then Kikyo." InuYasha looked away when he saw Miroku's eyes widen in understanding. "Something very bad happened. How could I be so stupid?! I trusted Kikyo and turned my back on Kagome. She killed her, Miroku. I have always vowed to protect Kagome, and in the end, it was my fault she was killed."

InuYasha sat on the ground with a thud, and looked up at the monk, who was now looking at him as though he were crazy. "Ummm, InuYasha, Kagome's not dead. I just told you, she headed home not too long ago."

"I know!" InuYasha yelled in his frustration. "That's because, in the end, it had been my creep of a brother who saved her. And it pisses me off to feel indebted to that bastard! It confuses me too, that he would have even bothered." Miroku lowered himself to the ground beside InuYasha. Although he was angered that InuYasha had done something as foolish as trusted Kikyo again, he felt bad for his friend who had obviously just realized that his Kikyo was truly dead, and that in her place was a shell of a person filled with hatred and malice.

His biggest surprise was held in the fact that Sesshoumaru had brought Kagome back to life. He had been there for a couple of battles in which he had tried to kill her, and yet he brought her back to life. He wasn't sure but he thought that the great demon's reasoning may have lie in InuYasha and not Kagome herself. It was the only thing that he could think of that could make sense. Sesshoumaru has no use for humans, so he wouldn't take pity on one, of that Miroku was sure.

Kagome lugged her bag to the well, her brain and senses numbed from the extensive events of the day. There were no tears now, only a stony expression that spoke itself of her mood. There were no thoughts going through her head except that she just needed to get home. Once she got home everything would make sense, even though she knew that she was just kidding herself. Things like this were not supposed to make sense. It was a cruel irony of life. The things you most desperately need to understand are the things that are unfathomable.

She reached the clearing with the well in it, and was halfway there when a voice permeated her trance like stupor. She brought herself around to see who had spoken as she hadn't really registered the intrusion. She grew pale and dropped her bag when she looked into the amber eyes. Tears formed in her eyes and she began to shake with sobs as all of today's events happened again in her mind.

Sesshoumaru stood, eyes coldly assessing the human before him. Her fear of him was so complete that the mere appearance of him here caused her to cry and tremble. "You will come with me wench, and assist me." He stated this plainly as he contemplated the many reactions that she could have. Her mere "why" through him off a bit, and angered him as well. She was so terrified that she couldn't even look up at him, and yet she was brave enough to question him? "You need not know why, merely that you are to come with me."

"No, why did you bring me back?" She looked up at him with such an enormous amount of pain and, some other emotion, in her eyes that he was taken aback. Most humans would be groveling had they been given a second chance at their pathetic lives, and though she was hurt from his brother, he was sure that the other emotion was gratitude towards him. "You may show your gratitude by assisting me."

Kagome felt a surge of anger at his arrogance. She began advancing slowly, as she said in a low voice, "How dare you assume that I am grateful. I owe you nothing, Sesshoumaru. If you recall right, I asked you not to bring me back!" By the end of her talking she was yelling and couldn't help it. Her anger was so strong that she couldn't contain it. She also felt an odd tension beginning in her chest.

Sesshoumaru was dumbfounded by the fact that this human girl had raised her voice at him and advanced warningly without any weapons for attack, or especially defense. And yet, he could feel a power building inside her as she grew angrier. '_Maybe it is her wish to die again. I will be happy to grant it, but only after she has assisted me.'_ "Human, regardless of your state of graciousness, you will assist me in finding that pathetic half-demon who goes by the name of Naraku."

He saw confusion pass over her face and was appalled to see her turn her back on him and begin walking away. He merely stood in shock momentarily, and then anger took hold. He lunged at her and grabbed her shoulder, roughly turning her to face him. "I will not stand for someone turning away from me, wench. You _will_ come with me, it is not optional."

"I'm getting my bag, stupid! If you want me to come with you, I'm not leaving it!" Again she turned away from him, knowing that when her skills were no longer required, he would kill her for such words. And he would enjoy it.


	4. An Innocence Lost

Chapter Four

An Innocence Lost

Rin sat silently in the corner of the room that she had been brought to. As Naraku watched her, he wondered how such a small and helpless human had gotten under the dog demon's skin. Sending Kikyo to capture the child had been proven useless, as Sesshoumaru had easily thwarted her attempt, and with a surprising protectiveness for the child.

Entering the room, Naraku saw the girl pull her knees to her chest and tremble slightly. Smiling, he began, "Your name is Rin, is it not, girl?" He waited for her jerky nod. "And your being protected by Lord Sesshoumaru, are you not?" She nodded again, slightly more trusting as he talked to her.

"Tell me how you came to meet Lord Sesshoumaru. Surely your parents did not wish you in the hands of a demon?" She looked up at him apprehensively, and slowly shook her head.

"Rin's parents were gone when she met Lord Sesshoumaru. He was hurt in the forest when Rin found him. She brought him food. But then Rin died." Naraku raised his eyebrows in surprise at her last statement, thinking the child a fool. When she said no more, he thought he would take his inquiries in another direction.

"What happened to your parents, Rin?" She looked up seeming a little saddened, and answered plainly, "Demon's got Rin's parents."

Naraku was surprised and asked her almost before he could stop himself, "Then, why do you stay with Lord Sesshoumaru, is he not a demon as well?" Rin looked up sharply and shook her head, vehemently enough to cause her hair to fall into her face.

"No, Lord Sesshoumaru is different. Lord Sesshoumaru would never hurt Rin. Lord Sesshoumaru would never hurt anybody." Naraku smiled as he thought of the result of the upcoming confrontation.

* * *

Kagome followed behind Sesshoumaru, riding some strange two-headed dragon-like creature. She knew that she had probably made him very mad earlier, and that was the only thing keeping her quiet now. In so doing, she was left thinking about her current situation and Sesshoumaru's sudden interest in Naraku. He had never bothered with Naraku before now, and it was egging at her why he would now. '_What could Naraku have done that would make Sesshoumaru resort to taking me, a human, to assist him?'_ Whatever it was, she knew it couldn't be good.

The more she thought about it, the more she felt the desire to ask him about it, but she didn't want to irritate him even more, which is the reason she kept thinking about it in the first place. It was all very frustrating. Sesshoumaru had said nothing to her since he had told her that she would be riding this creature and following him, and his increased silence worried her, but she doubted anything that he had to say to her would allay her fears. Kagome sighed and studied the scenery around her as they continued on their way.

Sesshoumaru heard her sigh and concentrated his thought on the girl. On their journey he kept feeling her eyes on his back, and had on more than one occasion sensed that she wanted to ask him something. The tension was radiating from the girl and becoming a nuisance to him. "Speak of what bothers you, human."

Kagome's head jerked around at Sesshoumaru's words and she blushed slightly, realizing that her brooding had not gone unnoticed. She held her voice calm as she answered him. "I was simply wondering what horrible thing that Naraku could have done that would have made you turn to a human for help." She mentally slapped herself when he stopped short, realizing that that was not the best way to phrase it. She had just inadvertently slapped his demon pride by stating that he needed a human. _Stupid, stupid, stupid! If he wasn't going to kill me before, he is now._

Sesshoumaru stopped in anger at her statement, and gritted his teeth to stop from growling at her. Nonetheless, his voice held a gravelly texture that he knew was very menacing. "He took something from me that I have every intention of retrieving." He glanced back at her over his shoulder and added, "I have no need of you, girl, but your specific powers may allow me to retrieve it faster, and that is important to me." With that he turned and walked away from her again, towards the demon presence that he recognized as Naraku's.

Kagome brought her head around as she felt the familiar tug in her chest. "Sesshoumaru, there's a jewel shard up ahead. But only one, so if it's the place we're going, then you will only be facing one of Naraku's demons, or a demon puppet." Sesshoumaru nodded at the girl and stated simply, "Be prepared, human, I will need you to be able to protect the two of you while I kill it."

Kagome's thought turned immediately to the stupid toad named Jaken that was always with Sesshoumaru, and she winced at the thought of all this trouble to save him. He was horrible and would kill her himself if given half the chance. But she knew that she would do as she was told on the off chance that Sesshoumaru might actually return her if she did.

They approached a building fast and Kagome saw Naraku standing in his human form in front of the door, smiling evilly. She knew that it was just a puppet, but the fact that he looked like a human, and she could sense no demon in him, was very disturbing.

Sesshoumaru could tell that this was not Naraku, but he knew that he was talking through it, so he did not hesitate before addressing him. "Naraku, return her to me and your death will be painless when I find you. And I will find you."

The second sentence was said in a lowered voice and Kagome felt a chill go down her spine. _Wait-what?! Her?!_ She watched in amazement as a small human girl came out from behind Naraku, her eyes widening at the sight of Sesshoumaru. For one frightful instant, she believed that Sesshoumaru intended on killing the girl when she was handed over to him, until she heard the child's delighted squeal and yell of "Lord Sesshoumaru!" Kagome turned befuddled eyes towards Sesshoumaru and the look of rage on his face shocked her.

Sesshoumaru was not sure why Naraku had brought him here, but the look of surprise and eagerness on his face at the sight of Kagome gave him a good guess. He was attempting to use him again, and it made his blood boil, though he didn't let it show. Seeing Rin safe had relieved him, but seeing her in Naraku's clutches had served to push him to the edge. He was losing control over himself and could feel his transformation begin, and quickly stopped it. Having learned to control himself when he was a boy, it bothered him that he had to do that.

"All I require for your human to be returned to you are the death of that woman, and the possession of the jewel shards around her neck. I'm sure that will be a simple enough task for the Lord of the Western Lands." Naraku chuckled, and the sound was the equivalent of a gavel at her sentencing. Sesshoumaru had made it clear that the possession of this girl was important to him, whatever the reason, and Kagome was sure that he would have no qualms about killing her to get the girl back. However, Kagome was still unsure of whether she should allow the girl to be returned to Sesshoumaru. She would never purposely put a child in danger. 

Sesshoumaru turned to the young priestess and saw a mixture of fear and concern in her eyes, and recognized that the concern was not for herself, but for the girl that she was looking at. Sesshoumaru knew what he had to do, but hoped that Rin would catch on. He went over and roughly pulled the girl off of Un, and dragged her towards Naraku by her arm. Sesshoumaru was pleased that while he had done this, the woman had not screamed or resisted. Rin seemed to notice that this distraction allowed her the chance to run to her master, and as she did so, Sesshoumaru pushed Kagome towards her.

Noting that the priestess had quickly grabbed the girl and run back towards Ah and Un, he turned his attention back towards a smiling Naraku. Seeing that expression on his face caused Sesshoumaru to bare his fangs as he quickly gashed him across the chest with his claws and drew his Tokijin and sliced the small puppet in half. He turned around and saw the young girl trying to keep Rin from watching, but he could tell by the expression of fear on Rin's face that she had not succeeded.

Kagome realized that Rin had just watched Sesshoumaru, whom she seemed to trust for some reason, slaughter what looked to her like a human man. She looked down and saw the fear and insecurity in the girl's eyes and pulled her quickly to her chest, but she knew that Sesshoumaru had already realized that the girl had witnessed it, and Kagome almost thought that she saw a look of regret pass over his face before it returned to the old emotionless mask.


	5. A Painful Request

Chapter Five  
A Painful Request

On the way home Rin kept to Kagome. While she didn't ignore Sesshoumaru's presence, she didn't exactly show much of an interest in staying any kind of close distance to him. Sesshoumaru was angered that Naraku had forced him to kill in front of her and caused her to distrust him. He had informed the priestess that they would be taking Rin back to his castle before he took her back to his brother, and she didn't seem to mind.

He watched on as, during one of their short rests, the woman took Rin around and picked flowers with her. Rin looked up at her happily as they gave chase to a butterfly they had disturbed with their antics. He was oddly grateful of the human's presence, as he was sure that this would be a lot harder for Rin had she not been there. He disliked feeling anything but disdain towards this human, and the fact that he did put him in a sour mood. "Rin, its time to go now. Come along."

Rin ran to him and he was surprised to feel her tiny hand slip into his. He looked down and smiled warmly at her. He checked himself quickly and lifted her onto Un. That was the first smile he had dealt without the promise of death behind it since he himself had been a child. He turned to see the priestess looking at him with a strange emotion showing on her face. One that he'd rather not try to comprehend at the moment, and he turned to leave.

Kagome heard Sesshoumaru's demand to leave, and saw Rin run over and take his hand. She feared for the girl at first, and then her breath caught in her throat. Sesshoumaru looked down and smiled at the girl. His smile had a very fatherly touch to it and Kagome couldn't help but think that he looked right like that, though it was surprising. Kagome had a rush of emotion towards him at that moment when she realized that the great lord did indeed have a weakness. It seemed almost ironic that it would be in the form of a small human girl. She saw him look at her and then walk away and decided to follow or she would be lost.

* * *

It was nearing nightfall when they reached Sesshoumaru's castle, and Rin had rarely said a word. The demon lord found he did not like this change in his charge, although on many occasions he had wished that her insatiable curiosity had been alleviated. Sesshoumaru felt a tug on his kimono, and stopped to look down at the small hand his kimono was bunched in. He felt oddly relieved that the young human was not harmed, and to know that she seemed not to fear him again. But when he looked at her face, he felt an odd twinge in his chest as he saw the look of fear and confusion on it.

"Lord Sesshoumaru isn't like the demons who took Rin's parents, is he?" His eyes widened and he stared at her for a minute, realizing the connection that Naraku had made in her mind. The connection he had enforced by killing in front of her. He quickly turned away noticing that he could not keep his face emotionless, and not wanting either human to see his weakness. But he was dumbfounded by the fact that he was unable to answer the small child.

Kagome was shocked to see the hurt on his face as Rin asked him the question and saw him quickly turn away. She knew that it was because he, for some reason, truly cared for this girl and this question had hurt him in a way she was sure he didn't understand. She felt another pang of emotions towards the demon, and quickly went to his aid. "Rin, Lord Sesshoumaru is nothing like the demons that hurt your parents. He would never do anything to hurt you, and you should never forget that." Rin turned to her when she was talking and then turned a broad, toothy smile up to Sesshoumaru. However, his attention was on Kagome.

Sesshoumaru's head jerked around at the sound of the young priestess's words. She had sensed his discomfort, and had actually come to his aid. He was very surprised at this though he quickly covered his reaction. He had forced her aid against her will, and yet she seemed to care what this human child thought about him. He realized that she had a very calming effect on Rin, and walked very thoughtfully towards the castle, with Rin now cheerfully walking between them.

Kagome followed the demon and the girl into the castle and waited patiently as Sesshoumaru took Rin to her room, and told her to change and get ready for bed. Rin quickly moved to Kagome and hugged the woman's legs and the priestess knelt to hug her back. "Good night, Rin." Sesshoumaru thought about how the girl had not immediately followed his orders, and frowned slightly. When she then entered her room and shut the door without attaching herself to his legs first, he realized that she was still more wary of him than was usual.

Sesshoumaru began to walk down the hall and stopped in front of another door about five doors down and on the other side of the hall. He turned to her with a bland, and slightly bored look on his face. "It is late, and you are tired, I can smell it on you. You will stay here tonight. Tomorrow I will take you back to InuYasha, if it is your wish. However, it is obvious that Rin is still untrusting of me and that she has grown attached to you. You treat her well, and I've seen you protecting the fox cub that you consort with. If you have any feelings towards the well-being of the girl, you may stay until Rin has calmed. I will expect an answer tomorrow. This is the room you will use tonight." He turned quickly and walked away leaving her to enter the room and get ready for bed.

She opened the door to the room and gasped at the beauty of it. It was done in antique green and gold and had very rich and vibrant textures. The bed and curtains were lavished in the finest silks and satins. The bed posts and window blinds were made from a sturdy bamboo, and the nightstand and wardrobe were of a rich pine wood. The floor appeared to be an oak hard wood, and she found that the natural look of it, without the finishing that would have been used in her time, made it all the more beautiful. She went over and set her bag on the bed and got ready for bed. She fell asleep wondering what she would do come tomorrow.

* * *

Kikyo held up her hand as one of her soul-gatherers landed gently on her fingers. She listened to it and found herself pleased at what she heard. '_So the young woman is with InuYasha's brother now. I know that he brought her back before, but I believe that that was because of his hatred for InuYasha, and not any particular attachment to the girl.'_ She decided that she would watch the girl and find the time to strike before going in blindly. She had learned not to do something that rash in her last attempt with Sesshoumaru. This time she would have her own reasons for attacking, and not be there for someone else's sake. She would be much more careful.

* * *

Kagome woke the next morning to a tap at her door, and found herself stretching luxuriously in the bed. She may be here against her will at the moment, but she had never slept in such a nice bed before. Her door opened and Rin bounded across the room and onto the bed with Kagome. She was smiling brightly, and although Kagome was surprised at her energy, she found that it was strangely contagious as she smiled widely at the girl and hugged her. "Good morning, Rin! How are you today?"

"Good morning, Rin is good. Can Rin and Kagome play today?" The girl looked so hopeful that Kagome couldn't stand to disappoint her. "Sure we can play today, I just would like to get cleaned up first if that's okay?" She jumped when she heard a dispassionate voice from the doorway.

"I will have Ruriko show you to the springs and bring you a towel and kimono. I'll assume that was your answer." He turned and walked from the door, but she noticed that he was not wearing his usual armor and he was wearing a different kimono than usual. It was a white one with blue as opposed to the accustomed red, and she thought he was much less intimidating in it. She looked back at Rin when she heard her begin to talk.

"Rin did not here an answer. What was Kagome's answer?" She smiled down at the girl and said cheerily, "Well, Rin, I'm going to stay here with you for a while."...apparently. She added in her head as she wondered just what she had gotten herself into.


	6. A Picture of Courtesy

Chapter Six

A Picture of Courtesy

Kagome had been away from InuYasha for three days and at Sesshoumaru's castle for two. She had played outside with the child everyday, and had sensed Sesshoumaru's eyes on them at all times. She realized that he didn't exactly trust her yet, and she was less insulted than she was intrigued and endeared by the fact that Sesshoumaru was so protective of the young human girl.

On the third day, Rin had asked to take a walk in the nearby forest. Kagome knew that Sesshomaru would not approve of her taking her there without him, so she looked at the girl and told her that they would have to ask Lord Sesshoumaru first. Rin smiled happily and whisked off to find Sesshoumaru.

Kagome and Rin wandered on and off of the path ahead of him, while he watched them interestedly. He had been watching the priestess with Rin since she had gotten there and was relieved that she seemed to treat her well. He was pulled out of his thoughts by the child falling and scraping her hands on some rocks on the side of the trail.

He went to check on Rin only to have the priestess look at her wounds and quickly pull off her bag and start rummaging through it. Curious, he stilled his approach and watched as she pulled out a container of something and readied to spray it on the scratches. Using his demon speed, he reached out and grasped the girl's wrist to still her from spraying whatever it was on the child. The priestess looked up at him in surprise and he looked pointedly at the container.

Kagome was surprised by his stopping her, and then realized that he didn't know what it was, and didn't approve of her using it on Rin without him knowing. She smiled up at him and quickly handed him the container, assuming he would be able to read it. He read it and handed it back to her, the question still in his eyes. '_Well, I guess that the word antiseptic means nothing to him. Not to mention the word Neosporin.'_ "Ummm... I guess the best way to describe this is, herbal remedies in a bottle." He looked back at the container, then at her, releasing her wrist and giving her a curt nod to tell her she could continue.

He watched as the priestess sprayed the neospotin on Rin's hands ready to stop her in an instant if it appeared to harm the girl. Quite on the contrary, the girl giggled and said that it was cool. After she was done, the priestess asked the girl if it felt better, and to Sesshoumaru's astonishment, she said she couldn't feel it anymore. He thought about what a powerful remedy it must be if she could no longer feel any pain. '_She must not be from anywhere around here. In fact, the kimono that she usually wears looks quite foreign to me, too. I must ask her about it and the neospotin later.'_

"Human, we will return now, though that remedy is powerful, she should still bandage her hands." Sesshoumaru felt an anger rise in the girl as she sharply turned towards him. He didn't believe that she was foolish enough to dispute his order, but she may surprise him.

"Listen, Fluffy, my name is not 'Human', nor is it 'Girl' or 'Wench'," she said the last word softer so as not to let Rin hear it. "My name is Kagome Higurashi. As I'm staying here for a short time, I would appreciate it if you would use it." He looked at the girl thoughtfully for a moment. His anger flared at the gall of her to call him such a demeaning name, but he felt an odd warmth take root in his stomach. He had never used a human's name when addressing them before, besides Rin, but he would humor this girl he decided.

"Alright, Higurashi. I shall address you as such. Let us go now." He turned to leave and he heard Rin's voice behind him. "Rin likes Fluffy. Fluffy suits Lord Sesshoumaru."

"Rin, you will never call me that name." He stated simply with a severe glare in the priestess's direction. He would talk to her tonight after Rin's bedtime, about this odd woman's origins.

That night, Kagome went to her room as Sesshoumaru took Rin to bed. She went to the wardrobe to grab a robe to take down to the baths. She laid the robe on the bed and began to undress. She was just finishing when she heard a knock on the door. She prepared to answer but the door was immediately opened and she quickly turned away from the door and was grabbing for the robe when she heard Sesshoumaru's voice.

"Hum- Higurashi. I have some questions for you." He noticed her state of undress in passing and was slightly amused at her frantic search for the robe in her obvious distress. "Can't you knock?!?!?" "I did knock." "WELL CAN'T YOU WAIT FOR AN ANSWER?! I thought part of being the 'Great Demon Lord of the Western Lands' would mean that you could at least be courteous!"

She had finally gotten a hold of the robe during her tirade and was now violently tying the tie around her waist. She spun to face him, and found him standing uninterestedly inside her door, patiently waiting for her to finish. She flushed at the fact that he had not bothered to turn around, and fumed at herself for feeling embarrassed. '_He's the one who walked in on me!'_ She calmed herself, and asked him politely. "What did you want to know, Sesshoumaru?"

"Where do you come from? Your manner of dress and speech are foreign to me. As are the objects that you carry with you." He saw the blush that was on her face, and found himself smiling inwardly at the thought that this human had thought that he might want to look at her. The thought was almost comical. Yet her comment about his not being courteous had bothered him. He, by breeding, valued good manners, and the fact that he had not turned from her surprised him. But it was not her body that had kept his eyes, but the humorous way she had attempted to cover herself from him. He had almost wanted to laugh at her.

He saw her uneasiness at his question and thought that maybe it was a good thing that he had decided to inquire about it. In his experience, humans did not act like that unless they didn't want to answer, meaning they had something to hide. The fact that she didn't want him to know furthered his desire to know and he stood there for a minute as she just looked at him, visibly trying to think of a way to get out of answering. "I am not leaving without an answer, and for that matter, neither are you."

Kagome looked up into his face and saw his determination, and realized that she was going to have to answer him, whether he decided to believe her or not was up to him. "I'm from a city called Tokyo. It's the capital of Japan." Sesshoumaru's eyes narrowed at the girl and he stated, "Kyoto is the capital of Japan, I will not be that easy to fool, Higurashi."

"I know it is, Sesshoumaru. But it won't be forever. I am from the future. About five-hundred years." She watched his face closely, looking for some disbelief, but only seeing the accustomed dead-pan stare that she was used to. She waited for some response from him, but he simply stood in her doorway, allowing no passage past, nor asking anything else of her. She grew frustrated and grabbed her bathing supplies and walked towards him. "Well, _Lord_ Sesshoumaru, if there is nothing else, _sir_, I would like to go take my bath now." Sesshoumaru's eyes narrowed at the back of the head that was now bowed low before him. He did not take lightly to being mocked, and she was doing everything in her power to point out his former mistake in courteousness.

"That will be all for now, Higurashi. You are dismissed." He didn't acknowledge her slight jab at him, and she smiled slightly before ending her bow, expecting him to have left her room. Instead, he was standing there with the door open, waiting for her to exit before him. The picture of courtesy.

She smiled at him politely and left towards the baths. Once her back was to him, a smirk appeared on her face. She was amused to find that her opinion of his actions had mattered enough to him for him to change them. She shook her head thinking that he wasn't as cold-blooded as he tried to make everybody think.

Sesshoumaru exited the room after her and watched her walk a little way down the hall. He chided himself for allowing her to mock him without him punishing her, and even more for not even being that angry. Her words had been humorous, and the joke had not been entirely lost on him. He turned and walked the opposite direction, his eyes glittered with humor and he felt a warm feeling wash over him, as her frantic search for her robe played through his head.


	7. A Friendship and A Fight

Chapter Seven  
A Friendship and a Fight

Over the next four days, Sesshoumaru had been angering himself. Every time an opportunity presented itself, he would embarrass the young priestess and smile to himself as the warm feeling took hold, watching her flustered, pink face turn from embarrassment to anger. He knew that his actions were very much fueled by his curiosity. There had never before been somebody who could show anger towards him and seem to show no sense of retribution.

This had not been entirely one sided, as she had been able to throw some of it back at him. The night after the courtesy incident, she had announced, after Rin had retired for the evening, that she was going for a bath. He looked up at her steadily and stated plainly, "Are you telling me because you would like my permission, or my company?"

His face was blank as he waited for her embarrassment, and was surprised when she instead returned with just as much sincerity, "Are you offering your company, Lord Sesshoumaru?" His eyes widened slightly at her audacity and then narrowed with annoyance as she smirked and headed for her room. He found the fact that she had turned his own intentions on him very aggravating.

Kagome walked towards her room and realized that she had finally gotten under his skin. '_Well, at least enough for him to let it register on his face.'_ She chuckled to herself as she went to her room to gather her supplies, pondering when it was that she had begun to want to get under his skin. She found herself upset that she had stopped viewing him as her captor, and more as a friend that she could tease. The realization made her stop in her tracks, and she forced herself to remember all the times he had tried to kill her, so that she would not let her guard down with him.

Kagome undressed again and wrapped the robe around her, cursing herself for trusting the demon. She quickly grabbed her supplies and headed for the baths and stopped short of the door when she saw the demon in question waiting patiently by them. Her face turned crimson and she stared at him in incredulity. '_Oh my god! He's not actually planning on watching me bathe is he? Why didn't I keep my mouth shut? I would rather let him watch me bathe than to admit that he got the better of me!'_ She saw obvious amusement dancing in his eyes as he watched her, and grew angry that her embarrassment showed so clearly on her face.

Sesshoumaru watched her skin as it went unnaturally white, and then a deep shade of red. He saw anger pass over her features and he had let the query in her eyes brood for a while before he opened his mouth and said cordially. "I came to wish you a pleasant evening, Higurashi, and to wish you a good night. That is, unless, you have some other request to make of me." He watched as she curtly shook her head, and he slightly bowed his own to her, noting that it furthered her anger and left her to her bathe.

Kagome was physically restraining herself from throwing her shampoo bottle at the retreating head, and she went to the bath fuming. She found herself constantly cursing him in thought and in word.

Sesshoumaru smirked as he heard her fuming in the bath. He was not spying on her, but she was not putting forth much effort into being quiet. The multiple frustrated growls that he heard continually brought his smirk and that familiar warm feeling back, and he wondered how, when he had defeated hundreds of mighty demons, he had never felt as much satisfaction as he did when winning a verbal sparring match with this mere human.

The thought brought a sudden frown to his face as he contemplated what would cause this, when he heard her leave the bath and begin to storm down the hallway. When she got close, he called out to her.

"Higurashi, if you continue like that all the way to your room, you stand a good chance of waking Rin. Please control yourself." He was surprised at her reaction when she turned to him, gave one of those frustrated growls, and a wet sponge connected to his shoulder and flopped to the floor in front of him. He looked up, eyebrow cocked in slight amusement, to find the anger gone from her face, which had turned very pallid, and her hands clasped over her mouth. She was obviously standing horrified of what she'd just done. "Are you trying to tell me you would now like to assist _ME_ with a bath, Higurashi?"

He watched her snap her hands from her face and ball them into fists. The color returned to her face and she quickly came over and snatched up her sponge. "Good night, Lord Sesshoumaru." With that, she turned and left his sight. He found himself smirking again as she left, and began to ponder why he found so much mirth in this human's embarrassment.

Kagome snatched her sponge up and left the room, telling him good night. She could not believe that she had just thrown a wet sponge at Sesshoumaru and that he had not killed her on the spot. Well, she knew that he would never hurt Rin by killing her, but she was surprised that he had not at least _threatened_ her life. Confused, she went to bed, and surprisingly, found sleep very quickly.

* * *

Two days after the bathing fiasco, Rin had wanted to play in the forest again. Again Sesshoumaru had followed them so as not to let them be in any real danger. As he watched them, he contemplated the strange woman that was running through the trees, hiding and jumping out at the child. He found himself very curious as to how she could be so naïve after seeing so many battles. She was still able to play with children after seeing such gruesome death, and she could feel pity for anybody, human and demon alike. When he had realized this, he was astounded by it. He had never known a human that could be so selfless, it was not in their nature, yet this young girl seemed untouched by the world around her.

He came to his senses as he heard Rin cry, only to see her immediately in the arms of the priestess and calmed. The priestess looked up at him, and her expression changed from worried to astonished, and he realized that he was smiling at them. He quickly blanked his face and turned away from them. "It's time to head back."

Kagome saw the girl fall to the ground again and was there with her as soon as she began to cry, already holding her. She spoke softly to her, instantly calming the child. She looked to the demon to see if he was angry with her for allowing her to be hurt, only to find the same fatherly smile on his face that he had given Rin when they first traveled back. It was just a fleeting smile as he quickly replaced it with his usual blank stare and turned away, informing them it was time to leave.

When they entered the castle, Sesshoumaru turned to Rin and told her she was to go bathe, as she had leaves and dirt all over her. Rin gave a resounding, "Yes, Lord Sesshoumaru" and turned to leave, turning quickly back to hug Kagome, and to his surprise, himself before turning to leave again. He turned to Kagome and saw her smiling serenely after the child. He could see the love of a mother in her eyes, and it astonished him.

"You make a good mother to Rin, Higurashi." He was not sure if the statement was meant as a half-compliment, or as a statement of fact. Either way he had not expected her to blush again and look at him apprehensively. As he looked at her, he realized the insinuation his words had held, as the girl had come to see him as a father figure for Rin. He was irritated that she would think that he would insinuate any such thing.

He quirked an eyebrow as he began in a sarcastic yet slightly harsh tone, "Do not worry, Higurashi, I would not stoop to taking a human as a mate, so you may consider yourself safe." Sesshoumaru watched the girl thinking that she would again be embarrassed, and was surprised again as he saw a look of hurt briefly cross her face. She turned her head back to where Rin had left to, and said in the same sarcastic tone, "Well then, I suppose I can bathe in confidence tonight." She looked back with a smirk at him, all evidence of hurt gone from her features, and turned to go to her room. Sesshoumaru watched her, oddly regretting making that hurt appear on her face, and mad with himself for even bothering to regret it. '_She is merely a human; her pain and pleasure are of no heed to me.'_ With that he turned to go to his own room.

Kagome walked away, not entirely sure why his statement had bothered her. It was simply a very direct statement of truth, and she was sure not intended to matter to her at any rate, and yet, it had hurt to hear him say it. She sighed, and turned to change out of her dirty clothes to get ready for dinner.

* * *

InuYasha had smelled the demon before it got there, but it was still a close call. They had been fighting it for a good half an hour, and it was difficult merely because they had come to find out that it had a jewel shard. Without Kagome to help them locate it, they were just hit and missing it. Finally, the Tetsusaiga hit the vulnerable spot and the demon disintegrated leaving only the jewel shard to lie on the ground in front of him.

He stooped and picked it up, hearing an evil chuckle from seemingly everywhere around him. Sango had been badly wounded by the demon, and Miroku had been unable to open his wind-tunnel because of Naraku's poisonous insects. InuYasha growled in the back of his throat at the sound of Naraku's voice. "You seem to be a lot less capable of dealing with me without your jewel detector around. I assume that you still believe her to be at home in her own time? How foolish." Again Naraku chuckled and they heard and sensed nothing else.

InuYasha's face paled and he turned to Miroku, "Miroku, take care of Sango, I need to go check on Kagome." He didn't wait for an answer before he took off towards the well that leads to Kagome's time. He was planning on going back to talk to her soon anyway. It had been about a week since she had left, and he was beginning to wonder if she was planning on never coming back again. Not that he would have blamed her. He had failed her. He had turned his back on her and she had paid for it dearly.

His eyes began to tear as he thought that, now she might be with Naraku. He was pissed that he had let this happen to Kagome. Being captured by Naraku, could, and probably would, be more painful than death. Aggravated he jumped down the well and found himself in her time. He quickly jumped out of the well and saw Kagome's brother, Souta, playing ball in the parking lot in front of the shrine, as soon as Souta saw him he went running over, a very curious look on his face.

"Hey! InuYasha, where's Kagome? She's really going to be behind in school when she decides to come back." InuYasha looked at Souta, horrified at what he had just heard. Kagome wasn't here. Naraku had her. She was in trouble, she had been for a week, and he never knew. "I'm sorry, Souta. I have to go, but I'll be back soon." He turned and went back to the well, tears streaking his cheeks.


	8. The Scheme of a Dead Priestess

Chapter Eight

The Scheme of a Dead Priestess

Kagome had been at Sesshoumaru's castle for eight days now, and she was playing with Rin in the garden. Sesshoumaru was not with them for once, which let Kagome know that he trusted her more now. She smiled about that and looked down at the little girl. She was the picture of glee, but Kagome could sense a change in the child's mannerisms when Sesshoumaru was with them. Kagome had been here for her, but she still was not completely trusting of Sesshoumaru, and if Kagome ever wanted to return to her friends she would have to fix that.

"Rin, are you afraid of Lord Sesshoumaru?" Rin looked up at her, and then seemed to think about it for a minute. "Lord Sesshoumaru has never tried to hurt Rin. Rin thought that Lord Sesshoumaru would never try to hurt anybody else either. But Lord Sesshoumaru hurt that man that was watching Rin." Rin stopped there, not explaining the rest and Kagome's eyes filled with tears for the girl. She was merely confused, because Naraku had appeared human to her.

"Rin, Lord Sesshoumaru didn't want to hurt that man. He hurt him because that man was not supposed to be watching you. He hurt him because he feels that you are his daughter and that that man had tried to hurt you. Lord Sesshoumaru loves you dearly, Rin. I don't believe that you have any reason to fear him." Rin looked up at Kagome, with a smile so big that it barely stayed on her face. "Kagome thinks Lord Sesshoumaru loves Rin like a daughter? That's good, because Rin loves Lord Sesshoumaru like a father."

Kagome was truly touched by the amount of emotion in the girl's voice and on her face. She reached down and gave the girl a hug. After a few moments they began to wrestle around. Kagome spent the next hour tickling and being tickled by Rin. Kagome was down on her hands and knees, feeling through the grass for the bracelet that she was giving to Rin, but she had dropped. '_This kind of thing always happens to me.'_

"I see that you have accepted your lot in life, human." Kagome looked up to see Sesshoumaru looking down on her, in more ways than one. Ah and Un were about fifty feet away and Rin took no time in bounding over to them and giggling wildly as she circled them.

Kagome watched Rin leave and then looked up at Sesshoumaru with so much rage and power swimming in her eyes that she could almost sense a tremor of fear in him. She stood up slowly and walked until she was inches from his face. "I don't care what you call me, or how you treat me, God knows you despise humans. But you will do well to remember that Rin is a human, and if you ever insult her again, I will make you regret it." She said this in a low, menacing voice, meant to be quiet enough so the child would not hear her. She maintained eye contact with him for several long moments, waiting to see that he understood that she was serious. He said nothing, and besides his eyes widening slightly, he did nothing either. Her anger ebbing away, she turned to join Rin with Ah and Un. She thought that she heard a sound emerge from him but disregarded it, and started giggling and running with Rin.

Sesshoumaru saw the girl look up at him with so much rage and raw power in her eyes that he felt an odd tremor go through him. It was not fear, but he did not recognize the feeling. He watched as she slowly stood and approached him. He could feel her power and her amazingly high body heat emanating off of her. She got within inches of him and he found himself unable to hear a word that the girl was saying, though she seemed to be threatening him. He felt the comfortable warmth in his body quickly rise to an uncomfortable heat, and his claws and canine teeth grew. He felt a growl in the back of his throat and prevented from letting it out in the girl's face. He thought his body's response to this girl odd; he could tell he was not angry, nor threatened. He was trying to retract his claws and teeth, as he watched the girl walk away. The sight of her retreating form broke his strangle-hold on the growl, and he let out a long guttural sound.

He finally understood that his body was not responding to a threat, but to his in-bred mating instincts. In his life he had been near many desirable demonesses, and it shamed him to know that his mating instincts had never appeared before now. It shamed him to think that they showed for a human woman. He gave a disgusted snort, and walked back towards the castle.

Kagome saw Sesshoumaru head back to the castle without saying anything to them, and wondered if she just might have issued her own death warrant. She shuddered and turned back to Rin. She still didn't think that he wanted to hurt Rin, but he could easily hide it from her, like he had Jaken. The girl was still young enough to believe that Jaken had simply gone away. Kagome shook her head and thought that she would have to watch herself while she was alone with Sesshoumaru now.

* * *

Kikyo had watched the scene with interest. She thought the girl admirable in her determination to shield the girl from his unpleasantness, yet incredibly foolish in her threatening the obviously more powerful Sesshoumaru. She had been annoyed when she had felt the girl's power swell into his face, and knew that she had not been mistaken when she had seen him react defensively automatically.

This faced her with an advantage and a disadvantage. So soon after angering him, he would be more likely to allow her to capture the girl; however, the girl herself would be a problem if her powers were awakened.

She had thought about just shooting the girl, but thought better of it. She wasn't exactly sure why her soul had not automatically returned to her body before, but she would take no chances this time. She would capture the girl and perform a spell to do the job correctly. She would just have to find a way to subdue her powers beforehand.

* * *

Kagome had not talked to Sesshoumaru much since she had yelled at him, and he had not been following them outside or on walks anymore. She was surprised to find that his absence was not as relieving as she would have thought. This thought confused her, but she refused to think about it while she was playing with Rin. Or rather, while she was watching Rin. Kagome couldn't explain it, but ever since her confrontation with Sesshoumaru, she had begun to feel weaker and light-headed if she exerted herself. She had done her best to conceal this weakness from Sesshoumaru, fearing that if she was no longer of use to Rin, then she was no longer of use to him. She was not particularly opposed to leaving, but was hoping to also get back to her friends safely. She sighed, allowing herself to sit on the ground as she watched Rin chase butterflies and pick flowers.

Sesshoumaru found his thoughts returning to the young woman and the fact that she had been able to elicit his mating instincts. He growled lowly, this time from anger. He had been shamed and had been avoiding contact with her since then. He had noticed from afar that something was amiss in her aura since then, but he had not been able to place it. He assumed that she had been affected by him as well. This gave him an oddly satisfied feeling, and he grew angrier with himself. '_That human's thoughts and emotions mean nothing to me.'_

He turned to check on them through the window as he had taken to doing in the last couple of days, so as not to allow his body to react to her again. He felt nothing looking upon her from this distance, and he thought that the reaction had been cause from surprise more than actual arousal. He saw her sit on the ground and merely watching the child, and a thought overtook his mind. '_There's something wrong with Kagome, she appears to be ill.'_ The use of her first name shook him and he quickly thought, as if to regain his dignity. '_The wench should not have taken the child outside if she would be unable to protect her.'_ He turned to go out there, taking his time, not eager to be in the young priestess's presence.

Kagome felt a chill go down her back and heard an all too familiar voice behind her. "I fear that you will not be as lucky this time." Kagome turned and saw Kikyo preparing a spirit blast. It was not strong enough to kill her, but it would be enough to knock her unconscious. Kagome turned and saw with horror that Rin was coming closer to her in the presence of the strange woman. The blast could potentially harm the girl and she was definitely close enough that it would affect her.

As Kikyo released the blast, Kagome felt a strength rising in her as she ran to Rin and pushed her away from the path of the blast, also causing it to only hit herself with partial force. She looked to Kikyo and saw that she had placed a spirit barrier around herself, and Kagome realized that Sesshoumaru had shown up. Thinking herself safe for the moment, she used all of her strength to crawl to the unmoving body of the young girl. She checked and noticed that the girl's pulse was beating strongly, and she held the girl to her chest, finally losing herself to blackness.

* * *

Sesshoumaru sensed the presence of the dead wench of his brother's and rushed to it. He was still about a hundred feet away when she released a blast of power at the young woman and, to his fury, Rin. He watched as Kagome rushed to Rin and pushed her out of the way, knocking the child unconscious, but leaving her unaffected by the blast. He darted at the corpse with his claws unsheathed, and stopped as she put up her spirit barrier. He turned to see Kagome look at him, and then crawl weakly towards Rin. He watched with immense wonder as she used the rest of her strength to gather the child to her protectively, and then black out. As he viewed the motherly gesture, an intense sensation overtook him and he desired to protect them above all else.

He let out a growl at the priestess, and looked at her dispassionate face as she regarded him slowly. "I really have no intention of hurting the child; I merely wish to take the woman with me. If you will allow me, I will take her and never return." Sesshoumaru's growl deepened and he felt his demon form itching to be released against this human. He had never used his full power to kill a mere human before, it was never needed, but this human had dared to threaten the lives that he held responsibility over.

"I will not allow myself to be blackmailed by a human, let alone the corpse of one." He said this very quietly, his voice laced with death. The priestess looked at him thoughtfully, and replied levelly. "Are you sure that this is the only reason for your ferocity." She smirked as his growl subsided and he watched her be carried away by her soul gatherers.

He turned to the girls and quickly carried them back to the castle.


	9. Confrontations

Chapter Nine  
Confrontations

It had been three days since InuYasha had been to Kagome's time, and he had dragged Sango and Miroku off on a search for Naraku. Miroku had tried to talk to InuYasha many times about the futility of simply wandering around searching for Naraku with no information as to his whereabouts, but InuYasha had dragged on day and night, never resting. He wouldn't leave Kagome with Naraku. He would not stop and wait for Naraku to decide to bring him into his plans. He would not turn his back on Kagome again.

InuYasha was lost in his thoughts, when Miroku grabbed his shoulder, motioning towards the sky. InuYasha was struck by the sight of Kikyo's soul gatherers. He was instantly burdened with indecision, wanting desperately to find and protect Kagome, but needing to see his Kikyo again. Miroku saw the look of uncertainty on InuYasha's face, and was disappointed to know that his friend was wanting to return to his first love, even after all that had happened. Not even Kagome's imminent danger could cut through the confusion caused by the wounds of his heart. Miroku was surprised to see anger flash across InuYasha's face, followed by determination.

"She will tell me where Naraku is, or she will really die by my hand." InuYasha said this with passion, though he knew that he could never strike down his Kikyo. He looked to Miroku and Sango, then took off after the creatures. He saw Kikyo repairing her body, and wanted to go to her to make sure that she was not hurt. He fought the urge and angrily addressed her. "Kikyo, where is Kagome?"

She turned around, surprised that she hadn't sensed him, and then remembered she had used much of her power in the spirit blast and barrier. Her senses were weakened, and she momentarily wondered how he knew that she had been to see Kagome, thinking that he may have been following her. '_No, I would have sensed that. Besides, if he had, he would know where she is.'_ She also thought that it would have been impossible for InuYasha to wait the entire day and a half that it had taken her to get here. Not that he would have been able to keep up with her soul gatherers anyway. She thought about denying any knowledge, and then thought better of it. It was obvious that she would not be able to get the girl from Sesshoumaru; however, InuYasha would never be able to stop her.

"Well, InuYasha, it would seem that your protection of the girl is very lacking, if you both allowed me to kill her _and_ your brother to capture her." She saw the look of shock, followed by rage, cross his face and she continued. "Do not worry, InuYasha. Unlike you, your brother is quite protective of the girl. He must have some use for her." She laughed at him and then left as her body had been fully repaired.

InuYasha stood stock still as Kikyo slowly walked away from where they stood. '_Sesshoumaru has Kagome? Why would he take her? What possible use could he have for her? He hates humans.'_ InuYasha was not any less worried for Kagome's safety now, and he quickly turned and ran towards Sesshoumaru's castle. If he didn't stop, it would still take him at least three days to get there. It had been his bad luck that he had been heading the other direction in search for her.

* * *

Kagome saw Kikyo standing, aiming her bow and looked to InuYasha. InuYasha simply looked away and walked towards Kikyo. Kagome felt her heart break as she closed her eyes, tired of living and being constantly reminded that she was second-best. She stood there for an eternity, willing the world away with her tears. She was pulled out of her reverie by the searing pain of a sharp arrow entering her chest. Her eyes flew open and all the pain, physical and emotional, shone through, emptying her until all that was left was the numbness of death. She saw InuYasha and the shock on his face. She knew that she should hate him for what happened, but she couldn't bring herself to do it. She loved him, now and always. She finally knew what she was doing. She would die; and give InuYasha a chance at true love and happiness.

She closed her eyes and heard someone approach her. She looked up to see Sesshoumaru. She was past feeling fear, so she looked at him unworried to see what he was doing. She was shocked to see that he had pulled his Tenseiga, the sword of healing. She assumed that he was planning on using it on her, though she could not fathom why, and shook her head at him. He looked confused and she used the last of her strength and time to try to explain to him. "Let me die, Sesshoumaru. I love InuYasha, and he loves Kikyo. If I die, Kikyo can have her soul back, and they will get to live the life they have always deserved. I will die happy knowing that I could do this for him." She could not keep consciousness any longer.

Kagome woke to find herself in her bed. '_Well, the bed that I use here, rather.'_ Her automatic recognition of the room as her own bothered her. '_I have been here for a while.'_ She looked over and noticed that Sesshoumaru was in the room with her. She saw him looking at her questioningly, and she recognized the look from somewhere. "What?" '_Not exactly the most dignified question, but it gets the job done.'_

"Are you in pain?" Kagome still had the confused look on her face as she slowly shook her head. "Then why are you crying?" Her hand reflexively wiped at her cheek, and came away damp with her tears. "It is in my experience that humans do not cry unless they are in pain."

Kagome remembered her dream, and felt her eyes tearing up again, but quickly wiped them away too. "I must have just been having a bad dream." Kagome quickly remembered all that had happened and a worried look overtook her features. "Is Rin okay?" Sesshoumaru answered quickly, "Rin is fine. She awoke while I was carrying the two of you to the castle, though she is worried for you. If you are not in any physical pain, she would like to see you to make sure you are okay."

Kagome nodded and quickly stated before he left, "I'm sorry I was such a burden." She looked down at her arms, and realized that she was in her pajamas. She felt a hot blush enter her cheeks. '_Oh my god. Please tell me that he did not change my clothes for me.'_ "Ummm... Sesshoumaru?" He looked at her expectantly. She blushed brighter. "Well... my clothes, ummm... you... well... how did... I end up in my pajamas?"

Sesshoumaru felt the now traitorous warmth wash over him at her blush, but still couldn't help himself. "Your clothes were covered in dirt from the battle with the priestess; you couldn't very well be put to bed in them." He saw the anger fill her eyes at what he had insinuated and felt his body temperature raise slightly.

"That doesn't give you the right to undress me. Have you no shame? You're just as bad as Miroku, I swear!" He did not know the name that she said, but assumed his character from her ranting. He calmly waited until she was done and spoke evenly.

"I never said that it was I who changed your clothes. I sent Ruriko in to do it before she put you to bed. However, if it is your wish, I will tend to it personally next time. I will be back with Rin in five minutes. That will give you time to change out of your pajamas." He made his way to the door and then stopped looking back at her, his face the usual blank mask. "Unless, of course, you would request my assistance." Her sputtering anger was enough to drive his body temperature up another couple of degrees, and he turned and left the room, and the fuming girl.

He was irritated that her anger had once again incited a reaction in his body, but let the fact go as he went to retrieve a worried Rin. He returned to her room slightly early and knocked on her door, making sure to wait until she had given them permission to enter before entering. He saw a smirk on her face when they entered, having noticed his reference to their former discussion.

Rin bounded into the room and into Kagome's arms, she quickly pulled herself back, remembering that her friend may be injured. "Is Kagome hurt? Rin doesn't remember what happened, because Rin fell asleep. But Rin remembers the bad lady wanted to hurt Kagome."

Kagome hugged the girl again, trying to reassure her that she was ok.

"Rin, Kagome is not injured, but we will let her rest before she will play with you." It took him by surprise that he had used her first name, though he didn't let it register. He figured the woman would simply assume that he had used her name to placate the child, and would not put much further thought into it. This seemed the truth until the child turned and said excitedly, "Lord Sesshoumaru called Kagome, Kagome! Rin thought Lord Sesshoumaru only called Kagome He-Hig-oo-rashi, or human." Sesshoumaru looked up at the woman and saw her eyebrow cocked in amusement, and she added, "Don't worry Rin, I think that it just means Lord Sesshoumaru likes me better now."

"Oh good. It makes Rin happy that Lord Sesshoumaru likes Kagome." The child turned a happy smile to Sesshoumaru, but he didn't look away from the face of the priestess. "Rin, its time for Kagome to take her bath. You may go and play with Ah and Un." The girl gave Kagome another hug, and bounded back out of the room, leaving Kagome alone with Sesshoumaru. She had been brave enough to say that while Rin was here, but now that she was gone, Kagome could tell just how wrong her statement had been as she could almost feel the anger radiating off of him, though he remained stone-faced.

She decided that whatever she was going to do, she was going to need to do it quickly. "I'm sorry about answering for you, but it just made her so happy." Try as she might to sound nonchalant, she couldn't keep a small note of sarcasm out of her voice. Then she thought back to what Rin had said that caused the problem in the first place. She added on more seriously, "I know that I told you this before, well, I yelled it at you. By the way, I'm sorry about that too. I know that you despise humans, but you have to remember that Rin is a human, and that someday, she will realize that. If you're always making bad comments about them in front of her, I think that she might grow to resent you, or even hate you. And I could be wrong, but I don't think that you want that." After saying this, she turned and gathered her bathing supplies, and turned back to him at the door. "Well, if you don't mind, I think I will go take that bath now."

She smiled at him and walked out the door, heading for the baths. Sesshoumaru watched her leave. The human woman had made him feel many feelings within a couple of minutes, some of them completely foreign to him, and now he was just standing there, stunned. He had been angered that he had been roped into having to call her by her first name whenever Rin was around, but partly at himself for having called her it in the first place. At the same time, he was amused, knowing that she had done it as a joke on him. Then her statements had left him completely off guard. He had felt anger at her for telling him not to insult humans, oddly frightened at the thought of the small human child hating him, and amazement at the fact that she had known that he would be bothered by it.

The strangest one of all was the odd feeling he got, when he had heard the concern in her voice when she said this. Her concern towards the child had not confused, or even surprised, him. It had been the concern in her voice that had been directed at him. She had been concerned that the child would hate him, concerned that he would be, what, hurt by it? What a foolish thought. He may have chosen to protect Rin, but she was still a human child. Her feelings toward him were of no consequence. However, it was clear that the young woman had shown concern for him, and he was not sure how to react to it. He had never been shown concern, and the fact that she was a human priestess, was astounding. He finally gathered his thoughts and turned leaving her room behind, as if this would clear the cloud of confusion in his mind.


	10. Reunion

::Sorry bout the wait... worked, like, 115 hours in the last two weeks... sigh Anyhoo... I'll try to write and update as much as I'm able... so please don't flame...::

Chapter Ten  
Reunion

Naraku had been keeping an eye on his brain child. He had planted the seed of doubt in the child's head about the demon lord, and he had watched as it had been smothered by the presence of the human woman. He was not finished, the doubt was still there, buried deep in the child's heart, and Naraku was about to water it, and watch as it blossomed fully.

* * *

Over the next two days, Sesshoumaru had become quite cold and distant again, and Kagome found herself saddened at this. She had begun to believe that she was wearing away at his icy demeanor, but she figured that she had been mistaken. She and Rin had taken to playing out in the gardens and fields surrounding the castle. Sesshoumaru was always close by, though he did not talk to them, or join them in their games. _'Not that he ever really joined in our games before...'_

Kagome shook the thoughts from her head and turned her attention back to little Rin, who was holding a beautiful blue flower out to her. As she was taking it, she heard a growl emanate from Sesshoumaru as they were approached from all directions by human bandits. Kagome looked at them and realized that they were not regular humans. In fact, they weren't living humans. She then saw Kagura appear and laugh menacingly at Sesshoumaru.

Sesshoumaru glared at the demon, and she moved to attack him, forcing him to distance himself from the two humans so they wouldn't be hurt. When he did this, the corpses surrounded the human girls and began to slowly advance. He watched as the priestess shielded Rin from them as best she could, and he turned to growl at the demon. He attacked her ruthlessly, his mind bent on protecting his charges and the demon rose in her feather. The bandits attacked the girls under her command, to stop Sesshoumaru from continuing his pursuit of her and he quickly slaughtered them all, blood flying and landing on the very humans he was protecting.

Kagome blanched as she realized what Naraku was doing. He was making Sesshoumaru kill these bandits in front of Rin so that she would lose her trust in him again. She quickly pulled the girl to her chest and shielded her from the massacre, but the girl was not stupid. She looked up and saw all the dead people around, and her eyes widened in horror when she saw that Kagome herself was covered in blood. Though it wasn't her own blood, the visual terrified her and she began to cry. Kagome looked over at Sesshoumaru who was standing rigidly, his back to them.

Kagome's eyes rimmed with tears when she saw him lower his head and look at his bloodied claws, and then slowly walk away from them. She wanted to go to him, and comfort him, but she wouldn't leave Rin here. She bent down and spoke reassuringly to the young girl. Soon Rin's tears stopped, but Kagome knew that the damage had been done. She slowly began walking back towards the castle with the girl's hand in her own and wondered how long it would be before Rin would be able to be with Sesshoumaru alone.

She then heard her name called out from behind her and she turned to see InuYasha there, his Tetsusaiga unsheathed and held out protectively. Kagome then realized that Sesshoumaru had returned and was standing behind her, ready to attack if need be, but not initializing that attack. He said in a monotone voice, "Get out of my lands, you pathetic half-breed." InuYasha growled and replied, "Shut up, Sesshoumaru! How dare you take Kagome!" With that InuYasha lunged towards Sesshoumaru and Kagome paled realizing that he wasn't even thinking about the fact that her and the child were there.

Kagome voiced a violent "SIT!" and when InuYasha fell to ground with a resounding thud, Kagome turned to face Sesshoumaru. He looked down at her, obviously surprised at her power over his brother and Kagome almost giggled. Her mood set back to serious, however, and she said to him in a quiet voice, "I'll take Rin with me. I know that you don't want her to go, but I think that it's best if she's away from you for a while. I'll make sure that she is safe, and when she's ready, we will bring her back to you."

Sesshoumaru looked down at the priestess with a mixture of awe at her concern for him and the child, and slight annoyance that she was informing him of what she was doing, and not asking for his permission to do so. He thought of what she said and realized that she was right. She would be leaving now, regardless, and Rin would not fare well at the castle without Kagome. He nodded curtly and turned towards the castle, leaving them to do as they wanted, though he kept all senses on them as they turned to leave. He heard a smack and some running towards him so he turned quickly to see that it was only the priestess, who had apparently smacked herself.

* * *

Kagome ran back, silently chiding herself for having hit her head so hard when she realized that her bag was still inside. When Sesshoumaru turned around and noted it was her, he slightly cocked an eyebrow at her in question. "I left my bag inside, and Rin will need some clothes." He nodded and she followed him into the castle. He went to her room to retrieve her bag, while she went to Rin's and chose a few pretty kimono's for the child to wear while she was away.

When he arrived at Rin's doorway, her bag in tow, he saw her neatly folding kimonos on the bed. She looked up at him and he saw sadness in her eyes. She walked over and took her bag from his outstretched hand and turned back to put the kimonos inside with it. He watched her in silence, and finally said, "You will keep her safe, Higurashi, or I shall see to it that you are not." He saw her pause in closing her bag, then she finished and turned to him. He expected her to be angry, he hoped that she would be afraid, but instead, she smiled largely at him, with tears of sadness in her eyes.

Kagome heard his order, and realized how much it hurt him, what he had been forced to do in front of Rin. She turned to look at him, and saw confusion on his face. She walked over to him and said, "I promise she will be kept safe, and I will make her understand what happened today. You know, she told me that she loves you as a father, and I don't think that Naraku could completely destroy that love, he just fractured the trust a little." Kagome suppressed a gasp when she saw his eyes water. He closed his eyes, and the water was gone when they opened, and he had his emotionless face back on, but Kagome knew that what she had seen had not been her imagination. Before she could stop herself she reached out and threw her arms around his shoulders, pulling him into a tight embrace before letting go and stating, "Well, we will be back soon."

Sesshoumaru stared in shock at the retreating form of the human. She had just hugged him. The great demon lord of the western lands had just been hugged by a human. A priestess no less. He stood rooted to the spot for nearly an hour before he turned and walked toward his study. He sat at his desk and read, attempting to push all stray thoughts about the two humans in his life, out of his head.

Kagome met up with everybody outside, and cast a glance over her shoulder at the castle. She then looked down at Rin and held out her hand. Rin took it and smiled up at her, "Is Rin going to stay with Kagome, now?" Kagome patted her hand and said in a soothing voice, "For a while, Rin. Then you will come back to the castle." Rin looked slightly frightened but nodded her head and kept walking. Kagome once again cursed Naraku under her breath. _'How can anyone be so evil? She's just a child! I'll make sure that he pays for this!'_


	11. A Few Surprising Kisses

Chapter 11

A Few Surprising Kisses

Kagome walked in silence, the child she had brought with her was now riding on Kilala, almost asleep. InuYasha looked back at Kagome, he wanted to talk to her, to apologize again. But he was also angry and confused that she had protected Sesshoumaru and even seemed to talk to him like he was a friend. He turned back and continued walking ahead of them, deciding that he would talk to Kagome sometime when he could get her alone.

Kagome walked back in silence. She needed to go home soon, it had been nearly two weeks since she had been, well killed, and it had been almost a week before that that she had gone home. She missed her family and her friends, but she also knew that she had an obligation to Rin now. She couldn't just leave her at the village, she had promised Sesshoumaru that she would make sure that she was safe, and leaving her with InuYasha would probably classify as unsafe in his brother's eyes. Kagome shook her head and then a thought popped into it, _'Rin could go back home with me.'_ Kagome smiled at the thought and realized it was perfect. She would love to show Rin some of the things from her time.

She continued the rest of the way to the village in silent rejoice that she would be able to return home. When they reached the village, InuYasha approached her and asked if he could talk to her alone.

Kagome looked at the form of the sleeping child and nodded while saying, "I need to go put Rin to bed first."

When she came back out, InuYasha was waiting by the edge of the forest and Kagome walked over to him. He looked at her with sadness in his eyes and then turned to walk into the thick foliage, knowing that she would follow him.

They walked in silence and finally InuYasha turned and stopped in front of her. She looked up at him, waiting for him to blow up at her for protecting Sesshoumaru, and she would get mad at him, and then she wouldn't feel bad about leaving tomorrow.

He looked deep in her eyes and said, "Kagome, are you okay?" His simple statement shocked Kagome and she dumbly nodded her head before she could think.

"Good, I was so scared. I thought that you had gone back home, and I didn't want to go after you. After what happened, I thought that you wanted to be alone, but then I went back and found out that you never made it home. I was so scared, because by then, you had been gone for a week. I thought that I had failed you again. I couldn't stand losing you again." With that he took her into his arms and held her close to him and buried his face in her hair.

Kagome looked up at him, astonished tears in her eyes. Her eyes widened slightly as he brought his lips down to her, gently moving against hers in tenderness. She allowed her eyes to close, enjoying the sensation of knowing that InuYasha was actually kissing her, and thought about what he had said. _'I couldn't stand losing you again.'_ Kagome groaned at the pain this thought caused, and InuYasha took it as permission to deepen the kiss. Kagome closed her eyes tight as his tongue moved in, stoking her own shyly, and Kagome saw the face of Sesshoumaru in her mind, smiling at her and Rin as though they were his family. Kagome opened her eyes wide and pushed InuYasha back away from her.

InuYasha looked at her with hurt in his eyes as Kagome shook the thought from her mind. When she looked up at him again, she too had a look of hurt in her eyes.

"Kagome? Did I do something wrong? I thought-" InuYasha stopped there, obviously confused and hurt at her rejection.

Kagome looked up with sadness in her eyes and smiled through her tears at him. "InuYasha, I think that you know how I feel. I think everybody knows how I feel, and I think that's why they get so mad at you sometimes. But InuYasha, do you know how you feel?"

InuYasha looked at her blankly, not exactly sure what she meant, but having a good idea. She took his hands in hers and smiled up at him again.

"InuYasha, you are the person I care for most in this world, and my own," his eyes lit up, and she continued, "but I know that you don't feel the same way about me. Who were you talking to when you said that you couldn't stand to lose her again?" InuYasha's eyes widened and she lowered her head and her voice, though InuYasha could still hear her perfectly fine, "And who were you just kissing?"

InuYasha opened his mouth to begin to deny her assumptions, but Kagome merely put a finger over his mouth.

"InuYasha, it's not me who needs to know that answer. I already do. I think that you need to make yourself see it." Kagome released his other hand and turned away from him, walking back towards the village. He could still smell her tears, and it tore him apart inside. No matter what he did, no matter how much he cared, and how much he tried to protect her, he always brought her the most pain. He always brought her to tears. InuYasha hung his head down and stayed where he was, until Kagome's scent was far away, and the feel of her lips seemed like a dream.

* * *

The next day dawned and Kagome was awoken by the shrill scream of her younger brother. She and Rin had passed through the well last night, partially so that Rin wouldn't have to stay with InuYasha, and partially so that Kagome wouldn't have to stay with InuYasha. Kagome went to her brother's doorway, and laughed when she saw Rin sitting on the end of his bed, and Souta lying with his blanket pulled up to his chin.

Rin was talking avidly, completely unaware of Souta's obvious discomfort, and Kagome came in to assist her younger brother.

"Rin, why don't you go back into our room to get dressed?" Rin bounced up happily and ran out of the room giggling.

Kagome turned back to see him blushing and said to him, "I'm really sorry, Souta. Rin's from the feudal era. She's not used to this time." Kagome then giggled and added, "And I'm pretty sure she's not used to boys like you." Kagome giggled again as her brother's blush deepened, and left to help Rin into some of her old clothes.

While they were eating breakfast, Hojo showed up to offer Kagome some kind of odd remedy to one of her non-existent illnesses, and Kagome accepted it as graciously as she could. When he asked her if she would like to spend the day with him, she was able to use her friend's daughter, Rin, as an excuse to decline.

"Well, she could come along with us. Your brother, too. I'm sure that they'd love a day in the city. We could see a movie, then the mall, and then the carnival later tonight." There was hope in his voice, and when Kagome turned to look at Rin and Souta, she could see it mirrored in their faces.

Kagome turned and said brightly, "That would be great, Hojo. I think that they would like that." Rin squealed and Souta yelled "cool" as Kagome mentally sighed.

Hojo took them to a new action movie that had just come out, full of explosions, fighting, blood and just all around gore. His obvious intention was that Kagome would have been frightened at some of it and leaned closer to him. Unfortunately, all of her time in the feudal era with InuYasha made her a lot less queasy than most girls her age. His plan did seem to work for Souta with Rin, though. However, it seemed that Souta was once again less than comfortable with the girl clinging to his arm.

Kagome thought that he was going to grab his arm away and yell at her, but he surprised her by tapping her hand lightly and leaning over saying, "Don't worry, it's not real. It's all fake." Kagome covered her mouth to hide her giggle as Rin looked at him and nodded her head. She relaxed her grip on his arm, but didn't relinquish it completely, and stayed like that they whole movie. She silently rejoiced that her little brother wasn't like InuYasha in his complete insensitivity.

While they were wondering through the mall, Kagome ended up buying Rin some clothes that she could wear while they were here, and she allowed Rin to buy Sesshoumaru a bouquet of plastic flowers that she had been amazed to find out would never die. Kagome also bought Souta a new game for his Game Boy, and it kept him beaming the rest of the shopping trip. Kagome tried to decline a beautiful necklace from Hojo, but he would hear nothing of it, so she took it with a smile and a peck on his cheek.

After Hojo recovered from his embarrassment, they headed off to the carnival, leaving their bags in Hojo's car. Rin dragged them on all of the rides after she got over her initial fear of them. They had ridden just about everything there (some things more than once), when Kagome and Hojo left Rin and Souta to play games while they went to get more money and bring back some ice cream.

Souta was trying his hand at the ring toss, when he actually won. He looked up at all the humongous stuffed animals to choose from, and then looked over at Rin.

"You can choose one, Rin."

She looked at him excitedly and said, "Any one of them?!" Souta nodded and Rin chose a white dog.

As the man got it down, Rin turned to Souta and threw her arms around his neck saying, "Thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you." She then turned and quickly pressed her lips to his cheek in a small peck and turned back to the man who held out the dog with a big smile on his face.

Kagome returned with the ice cream to see a furiously blushing Souta and a Rin carrying a huge white dog stuffed animal, the irony of which was not lost on her. She randomly wondered if Sesshoumaru would be threatened by it and banish it from his castle.

The thought of Sesshoumaru being intimidated by a stuffed animal caused Kagome to burst out laughing, only brought out of it by an angered Souta yelling, "What are you laughing at? Just shut up, Kagome!"

Kagome looked up, confused, and saw both Rin and Souta blushing now, and wondered what exactly she had missed.


	12. A Cute Little Love Story

Chapter 12   
A Cute Little Love Story

Kagome left Rin with Souta in the house, as he was showing her the wonders of modern gaming machines. She rolled her eyes at the two and went to talk to her grandfather in the shrine. She found him amidst a pile of books in the back storeroom of the shrine's shop. Kagome coughed as soon as she shut the door behind her, the place was filled with dust.

"Kagome, I don't mean to be rude, and maybe I'm the only one here who doesn't know, but just who is that girl?" Kagome looked at him and smiled, "Her name is Rin, and I'm watching her for a fr-, well, I'm watching her for someone." Kagome's smile faltered a little. She had almost just called Sesshoumaru her friend. Awkward.

"And just who is this, someone?" Her grandfather looked more curious than disapproving, so Kagome told him. "Well, he's InuYasha's brother, Sesshoumaru. Oh, sorry. Lord Sesshoumaru, the great demon lord of the western lands." Kagome giggled and covered her mouth, realizing that her grandfather wouldn't see the humor in her statement. She needn't have worried though, because when she looked to him, she realized that his face was the picture of startled excitement.

Kagome watched in shock, as her grandfather squealed, squealed like a schoolgirl meeting a popstar mind you, and began digging through the books strewn about him. Kagome watched in worry for her ailing grandfather and shrank back when he brought out a particularly glorious leather-bound volume. '_I really hope that he doesn't intend to give that dust-ridden thing to me...'_ Her worst fears were realized as it was shoved in her hands, causing a cloud of dust to rise from it.

Kagome coughed the whole time her grandfather was talking. So when she was done, she had to ask him to repeat everything again. He gave and exhassperated sigh and began again. "Kagome, if you are talking about _Lord Sesshoumaru_ the son of Inutaisho and the heir to the western lands, then I already know of whom you speak." He pointed down to the page that he had apparantly opened the offending book to while she was dying. '_His concern for my well-being astounds me...'_

Focusing on the page, Kagome saw an illustration of a large white dog that was, although not perfect, a close enough resemblance to tell that it was Sesshoumaru in his dog form. Her eyes grew wide as she read some of the adjoining information.

_'Lord Sesshoumaru, Great Demon Lord of the Western Lands, was the greatest demon lord in all of Japan. His power and respect was rivaled by none. His control of his land and people was admired by all, and none before or after him made such impact..._

Kagome stared at the book in shock after reading the beginning. There were three pages of tiny print dedicated to him. _'Jeez, it must be his entire life cataloged in here...'_ Kagome thought through it and turned to her grandfather. "Gramps, can I please have this? I would like to take it back to him. He has protected me on many occasions," _'Though maybe not willingly...'_ "And, I want to give something to him." _'And I know that he would be thrilled to know that he is known even in this era for his power... Arrogant jerk...'_

Kagome chuckled at her insult of him, but then remembered the sadness that she had seen in him when Rin had been terrified of him. Her face fell and she added. "Please Gramps, I want to give him something to be happy about." Her grandfather stood up and nodded his head, motioning for her to follow him. Holding the book to her chest, she followed him back out to the store.

Her grandfather took the book from her and looked down on a sheet on the counter. Kagome watched him with interest as he punched something into the computer. _'He must be taking out of the system...'_

"That will be 32 dollars and 14 cents, Kagome." Kagome looked at him, horrified, and he put up a defensive face. "I won't make any money here by giving some of my most expensive items away now will I?" Kagome glared at him as she reached for her allowance money in her back pocket.

* * *

Kagome came back in and watched Rin and Souta play some racing game on his PlayStation. Kagome laughed as she watched Rin win for the fourth game in a row, and Rin looked back at her, slightly confused, she turned back to Souta and asked, "Isn't Rin doing well, Souta?" Souta huffed a bit and mumbled, "Well, you're doing okay for a girl." Rin smiled large, not understanding his lack of a complement, and Kagome stated, "Souta, I hate to break it to you, but you're not doing very good, even for a girl..."

Kagome was subjected to the most death-filled glare she had ever seen. _'Wow, I think that Sesshoumaru might even be envious...'_ She started at the realization that she was thinking about Sesshoumaru a bit more than she probably should. She left the room, having heard that they were going to go out and pick flowers again, or rather, Rin was going to pick flowers, and Souta would practice with his soccer ball, as usual.

Souta watched as Rin trotted around in the field behind the shrine, occasionally stooping to pick a flower or dandelion. He shook his head slightly, wondering just how he ended up with girl duty, and began to practice maneuvering his soccer ball between his feet and across the field. He stopped suddenly when he realized that Rin was now sitting at the side of the field, watching him. He blushed slightly and stopped, looking at her for a while before finally asking, "Ummm... did you want to try?"

He watched as Rin's face lit up and she came running towards him. He handed her the ball after he told her the basics of the game and stepped back a little to watch her try to kick it around. Souta watched as she gave a few hard kicks to the ball and had to chase it down, only to do it again when she got to it. He was watching her with a smile on his face, and he burst out laughing when she tried to kick the ball, now only about ten feet away from him, but missed and fell on her butt.

When she heard him laughing, she looked up and looked like she was going to burst. Souta was worried that she was going to cry, and realized that he probably shouldn't be laughing at her. He tried to stop, but needn't have worried because a huge smile shone on her face, before she burst into gails of laughter too. Souta's laughing died immediately, though a smile stayed on his face as he watched her. _'When she smiled real big like that, she looked really pretty...'_ Souta blushed at his own thoughts, only to blush more when he remembered her kissing him the night before.

Rin slowly stopped laughing and looked up at Souta with the big smile still on her face. When Souta saw her, he blushed even harder at his instant thought of her being pretty again. He quickly looked to the ground and muttered a quick, "Ummm... I think that we should go back inside now. The bugs'll be out soon." With that he turned and walked back towards the house, hearing her following behind him.

* * *

Kagome had packed all of her clothes, and the clothes that she had given Rin while she stayed here. They had been here for about a week, and it was time for them to head back to the feudal era. Kagome had been sure to wrap the book that she had BOUGHT Sesshoumaru, _'Stupid Gramps...'_ and placed it in the bottom of her bag. Rin was holding tightly to the stuffed animal that Souta had won her, and Kagome assumed that she meant it as a gift to Sesshoumaru as well.

They entered the well house the whole family in tow, and Mrs. Higurashi gave Rin a hug and then Kagome, telling them to be safe, before leaving to go back to the house to finish dinner. Gramps gave them both safety charms that, Kagome had no doubt in the world, were useless. He then asked Kagome to come to the shop so that he could give her some things. Kagome rolled her eyes and followed him, spending the next five minutes trying to refuse taking all the demon charms that he had in his store.

Kagome returned to the well house, slightly heavier burden in tow, to see Souta telling Rin goodbye. Kagome's eyes widened as she watched him step forward and give her a quick peck on the cheek. She squealed and Souta turned and saw her. He blushed even harder than he already was and shouted at her to shut up before running quickly out of the well house. Kagome grabbed the smiling, and slightly blushing, Rin's hand, and made her way over the well. Her last thoughts in her time were of how much she was going to tease her brother when she came back.


	13. Betrayal of the Wind

A/N: Hey! Trying to update as much as possible... I'm going to be starting a mailing list, so if you wanna be on it, just send me your name and email either in a review or to my e-mail: NonEssentials  (take out spaces)  I'm also wondering everybody's opinion on lemons between kag and sess. I wanna know if I should put them in or not, so let me know! Oh, and my sis says... umm... hi. Was going to spork me to death if I didn't say that... go check out her stuff... Kirara81 or Kilala81. Now read damnit! And review!!

Chapter Thirteen   
Betrayal of the Wind

Miroku sat, admiring the view. Kagome was running around playing with Rin, and Sango was practicing with her boomerang. He looked up at InuYasha, who was sitting in a tree, occasionally scoffing at the two girls running around, and grew sad. These were his friends, close to his family, and he would have to part company with them tomorrow.

In a small battle just a week ago, something had happened to his wind tunnel. He hadn't informed the others, but it had widened when he had drawn in a demon. He didn't have much time left, and he truly did need an heir. He would need to go back home and settle down, passing his battle on.

He watched Sango, practicing her martial arts, and was truly regretful that he had not been able to honestly court the beautiful woman. He admired her strength and beauty, and her innocence was astounding, considering everything she had been through. She was someone he could find himself in love with.

Miroku started slightly as the woman in question turned and looked at him, apparently having felt his gaze on her for long enough. She smiled slightly at him before turning back to her practice, and Miroku realized it was too late. He was already in love with her. Sighing sadly, he stood and walked back towards the hut, intending to inform Kaede of his decision so that she might tell them when he was gone.

* * *

Kagome had been chasing Rin around for awhile, and she was getting tired. She decided to take her out to pick herbs for Kaede, and to talk to her. "Rin, do you miss Lord Sesshoumaru?" Kagome looked down at the sweet girl, hoping that she was less frightened of him now. Rin screwed up her face, as if trying to think something difficult out. 

"Rin _does_ miss Lord Sesshoumaru. But Rin doesn't want to go back there. Rin doesn't understand why Lord Sesshoumaru hurt those people. Rin thinks Lord Sesshoumaru might be sick." Rin looked saddened by this, and Kagome knelt in front of her, taking her hands in her own.

"Rin. You need to understand, Lord Sesshoumaru isn't sick. He didn't hurt those people because he wanted to. He hurt them because if he didn't, then they would have hurt you and me. Lord Sesshoumaru was protecting the people he cares about..." Kagome smiled gently at the child. "Lord Sesshoumaru cares about you dearly, he would risk his life to protect you, and I think it hurts him a lot that you're afraid of him."

Rin smiled at her, love shining in her eyes. Kagome had tears in her eyes, thinking of Sesshoumaru alone in his vast castle, no ray of light to break the darkness. She stood, taking Rin's hand and started walking back to the village, knowing that it would soon be time to take her back to Sesshoumaru.

Kagome giggled and added, "I think we'll need to go visit him again soon. You have to show him the puppy that Souta won for you. You know, I think Souta's got a crush on you..." Kagome beamed and giggled again, and Rin looked up at her questioningly. "A crush?"

Kagome giggled again swung Rin's arm back and forth a little. "It means he thinks you're pretty." Kagome smiled largely and giggled as Rin blushed bright red.

* * *

Kikyo watched as the two walked away, giggling and smiling. She hated it. She hated that her reincarnation got to be so happy. She hated Kagome for everything she was, everything she, herself, was never allowed to be. And more than anything, she hated herself for being so petty and spiteful. She had become no better than the demons she once destroyed. 

Kikyo watched sadly as the two girls walked like mother and daughter, and tears fell softly down her face. She had wanted a child when she was alive. She had wanted InuYasha's child. There, towards the end, she hadn't even cared if he was human or not, she had merely wanted to be with him.

She shook her head violently and wiped the tears away, angry with herself. _'I will not be like this any longer. I will get my soul back, and I will live my life as I should have.'_ She turned and walked away, determined to wait until the perfect moment, but she would not attack again while the child was there. She had almost hurt her last time, and that was unforgivable. But she would not wait much longer.

* * *

Sesshoumaru stood, unable to concentrate on anything in his study. The past couple of weeks had been peaceful. He had been able to do his rounds in his lands properly, and take care of other important business that had been slacking since taking in the humans. 

However, Sesshoumaru was restless. He had grown accustomed to the constant backround noise in his castle; to the scent of flowers that the child had picked in his gardens for him and displayed in every room she had access to. He had also begrudgingly became accustomed to her scent and presence being near him. To have this all missing suddenly was almost grating to his senses.

To his disgust, he found himself missing the verbal sparrings with the human priestess as well. It had been refreshing to have someone who was unafraid of him in his house, though he could no longer trust his own motives for keeping her here after their last encounter. He growled in annoyance when he pondered on the subject. While the priestess was attractive for a human, she was still merely a human, and it was shameful that he had been aroused by her.

Sesshoumaru snarled slightly and took off to secure his lands. He needed to do something, he would not waste anymore of his time thinking about the two humans. Fighting would be a welcome distraction. He took off for the east border of his lands, and stopped, catching a familiar scent. "Naraku..." He stopped and stood, fully prepared and ready to kill anything that moved.

Kagura walked out of the shadows, cautious, recognizing his intensity. "Lord Sesshoumaru. I have come here to warn you." She waited for him to show any sign of movement indicating he was going to attack. When he remained still she continued. "Naraku is planning to attack InuYasha tomorrow. He intends this to be the final battle. He desires the remainder of the jewel shards, which your brother collected just two days ago, and he intends to kill everybody associated with him." Kagura paused seeing his eyebrow quirk in question.

Sesshoumaru listened to her calmly, knowing that she fully intended to have him kill Naraku for her. When she was finished, he merely looked to her to continue. "And why should I bother?" He waited for her to continue, claws itching to kill her if she did not think of something worthwhile.

Kagura cocked an eyebrow as well and started. "Lord Sesshoumaru, is InuYasha's woman not caring for your child?" Sesshoumaru's thoughts stopped. Had he not been so intent on not thinking of the two, he would have recognized the danger, as it was, it took all his control not to fly off to InuYasha's village. "You say he intends to move tomorrow? Then I shall meet him in battle. He has interfered in my business far too many times. I shall show the half-breed his place."

* * *

Naraku watched the scene unfold through Kanna's mirror, and chuckled evilly. He held Kagura's heart in his hand, contemplating destroying it, but decided on something far worse. He would move now. No more waiting to attack. He would not risk Sesshoumaru showing up before he could adequately hinder InuYasha and his group. The jewel shards would be his. 

He looked back into the mirror, at Kagura's face, and whispered evilly. "She shall have her heart back. So that she can know true pain."


	14. Author Note

Well... hello everyone. My god it's been five and a half years since I last updated. I recently stumbled upon this old story and it made me quite nostalgic. It was so interesting to read. It's been so long that I didn't even remember most of the story. Actually, by the time I got to my last chapter, I was angry that I hadn't finished it. I was wanting to scream UPDATE at someone...

Well, I don't remember how I intended to end this, but I do have a few ideas now. This is not a guarantee that I won't get distracted again. I'm finishing college, getting ready to move and getting ready to get married. But I just wanted to send out a chapter so that the people still subscribed to my alert would know that I'm hoping to try to give this unfinished story some closure.

Please review and give me ideas if you've got them!


	15. A Battle Lost and Won

**Author's Note: Hey everybody. So, I'm pretty much an ass and it took me _another_ year before I finally got around to doing anything with this. Let me know if you like where this is going. There will likely still be quite a few chapters after this. Let me know if my writing is still up to par. It was a lot of fun revisiting this and I'll try to keep going though updates will probably not be too regular.**

* * *

Kagome tossed around in the futon that she was sleeping on. She was very uneasy. Rin was laying next to her in the small room, but she felt it difficult to fall asleep knowing that the girl could be in danger. _I wonder if this is how Sesshoumaru feels all the time?_ She shook her head a bit and finally sat up. Sleep would not be an option when she didn't feel that they were safe. She looked over at the girl's sleeping face and wondered when they would be able to return to the castle.

Kagome started. She realized that she missed being there. She missed being surrounded with something that didn't make her think of all the things that were wrong in her life. Then she shook her head. _No, it's not that it didn't make me think of them. It made them not matter anymore. _The longer that she had been there, the more that it didn't hurt when she thought about InuYasha and Kikyo. She had also realized that the love that she had felt for him had been more a reflection both of what her soul had felt in a previous life, and the look that he sometimes got on his face when he looked at her. She had felt his love for Kikyo, and it had drawn a response out in her.

Kagome smiled. She realized that she didn't love InuYasha as any more than a close friend. At one point she had been on her way to feeling a true and deep love, but she was actually grateful at what had happened. Both of them would have been falling in love with the person that they wished the other had been. InuYasha wished Kagome was still Kikyo, and Kagome wished that he was a man who loved and respected her as herself. It would never have worked.

Kagome tensed. Something was wrong. There were four jewel shards approaching. _Too fast._ She jumped up and looked wildly at the sleeping form of Rin before she ran to the door and shouted out. "InuYasha! Something's coming!" She saw InuYasha jump down from a nearby tree and look over at her. "What is it?"

"Demons. Four jewel shards are converging on the village. We need to get out of here. Now." With that, Kagome looked again at the sleeping form of Rin and picked her up. "Rin, I need you to come with me now. Everything is fine, but we must be quick and quiet." Rin's eyes were wide with fright but she merely nodded and stood ready when Kagome set her down. They moved stealthily from the hut and towards the forest. Kagome could tell that the demons were all coming from other directions and needed desperately to find safety for Rin.

InuYasha watched as Kagome exited the hut with his brother's small girl behind her. She looked so intensely protective of her that InuYasha was momentarily stunned into inaction. He hadn't seen that look on Kagome's face before. He hadn't seen that look at all since he was a young boy. It was the look of a mother who was desperate to protect their child. He shook his head and turned to meet the demons that he could now smell.

As she made her way with Rin through the trees, Kagome stopped in her tracks. He had been hiding it._ How could he hide the presence of the jewel from me?_ Kagome looked terrified down at Rin, and then back up at the demon smiling evilly at her from beside a nearby tree. "Now, now. We can't have the two of you missing all the fun, can we?" Kagome stood protectively in front of Rin, but he was quick. He grabbed the two girls and made his way towards the other demons that Kagome could feel, and she blanched. He was dragging her and Rin into the heat of the battle.

* * *

Sesshoumaru was flying towards InuYasha's forest. He didn't want to wait until tomorrow to make his way there. He couldn't stand the thought of showing up too late. His eyes were bleeding red at the thought. He only hoped that there was someplace safe for Rin to be kept so that she would not have to once again see him slaughter other beings.

When he neared the forest, all of his thoughts ceased. He was late. Naraku had moved early and he could smell the girls scents mixed with the scents of the demons. They were in danger. Sesshoumaru arrived in time to see four demons and one of Naraku's puppets fighting with his brother and his allies. His eyes moved quickly through the scene and found the two he was searching for and his heart stopped. The puppet was sending out a tentacle. Kagome had been fighting them off valiantly, but in an effort to distract her, this strike was sent at Rin. Sesshoumaru didn't think, he just moved.

Kagome was breathing hard. Naraku's puppet had been sending tentacle after miasma filled tentacle at her and Rin since they had arrived on the scene. She had fended them all off, but she could tell that he was still merely playing with her, and she was getting extremely exhausted. She wouldn't last much longer, she needed to find a way to stop him. Then she realized that he had aimed his next strike at Rin. She couldn't think, couldn't move and couldn't stop him. She let out an anguished scream as she saw the strike move towards its target in slow motion.

She gasped. It didn't make it to Rin. Kagome let out another terrified and strangled cry as she saw the miasma filled appendage going through the chest of Sesshoumaru, as he stood in front of Rin protectively. He fell to his knees as she watched and then everything went blank.

Sesshoumaru felt his knees hit the ground somewhere through the incredible pain in his chest. He looked down and his conscious broke as he saw what had happened. He snarled viciously and thrashed about, his animal taking over, trying to remove the weapon from his chest. There was no coherent thought left, his animal instincts aiming only to reduce his pain. Through the haze of his pain he heard crying behind him. When he thrashed about to find the offensive sound, he fought his way back to his senses. Rin was there, crying and begging him to be alright.

Sesshoumaru took back some semblance of control over his body and his emotions. He stopped thrashing about like a wild animal and stilled himself. "Rin," he said in the most emotionless and normal voice he could muster in an attempt to show the girl that he was still alright, though it was quite a bit quieter than normal. "Run to the forest and don't come back here until I call for you." He saw her pause before nodding, somewhat reassured, and then she turned to run away. Then he saw her stop, staring to the side. "Rin!" he hissed, but she didn't even notice him it seemed. Sesshoumaru's slightly blurred vision followed her line of sight and understood immediately why. She was staring at Kagome, who appeared to be glowing a strange blue color.

Sesshoumaru shook his head in an attempt to clear it. The action led to him coughing around the horrible projectile that was embedded in his torso. He felt something coming out of his mouth, and knew it must be blood. All of the sudden the tentacle that had been holding him upright was gone. He fell to the ground and looked up even as everything was going dark, hoping desperately that the tentacle wasn't on its way to either of the human girls. He was surprised to see that the puppet was gone. As were the other four demons.

All of the sudden, his own body was wrapped in a blue mist and he looked up to see Kagome looking down at him. His vision was becoming stronger, and the pain in this chest was lessening. The bright blue eyes that were looking down at him were filled with a fierce protection that confused Sesshoumaru. All of the sudden the girl's eyes fell closed, the mist dissipated, and the girl fell to the ground beside him.

He finally heard the sound of Rin crying and felt her pulling on his robes. He looked down at her and reached for her. With both of his arms. _What…_ He also looked down at his chest to find that there was no trace of a wound there. The small priestess had somehow manifested her clearly considerable powers and purified all the demons, and healed all of her allies.

Miroku was fighting desperately with one of the large demons. He thought he might have to use the wind tunnel, but was too afraid of what might happen to those around him if it imploded. All of the sudden, the demon he was fighting was gone, and a purified jewel shard fell delicately to the ground in front of him. He looked around to see a blue mist filling the clearing and felt an odd sensation in his hand. He looked down terrified. _It's happening. I need to get away from here._ But then the sensation stopped.

Miroku looked down at his hand in confusion before slowly removing the cover. _It's… gone._ Miroku looked around the clearing to see what had happened. Naraku hadn't even been here. Had somebody killed him elsewhere? Was that why the demon's had disappeared. Why his wind tunnel was gone? Then he saw Kagome. Her priestess powers were physically manifesting themselves all around them in this blue mist. He watched as she walked over to Sesshoumaru, looked at him and then fell to the ground, the mist disappearing.

Without another thought, Miroku ran over to Sango and grabbed her and held her close. He was crying and he couldn't stop himself. Sango pulled back from him and stared, very unnerved and having no idea what was going on. Miroku did the only thing that made sense to him right then, and kissed her with all of his joy, surprise and love.


End file.
